VEINS:A BLOODY TALE
by Sailor Moon Girl
Summary: When he was 6 years old, Ranma Staotome nearly died during a fire. However his friend Ryoga saved him by turning him into a being of myth and legend...a vampire. 10 years later, the supernatural collides at home when the demon world tries to come to ours.
1. The Prologue

Disclaimer: Okay everyone; I don't own Ranma one half at all. Not a single character is mine…except for Vladimir. Also, the way I described how vampires are is my own.

**_ VEINS: A BLOODY TALE  
Victim 0: The Prologue_**

Red and yellow flames licked at 6-year-old Ranma's feet while his back was being roasted like he was in an oven from the rocket hot wall he had pressed himself up against. Tears streamed halfway down his cheeks before they evaporated in the intense heat as he clutched his father's, Genma's, pant leg. The mature man with a balding head covered up his face from the flames as Ranma cried and shouted over the roar of wood cracking "It's okay son, I'll get us out of this." A beam from the wooden ceiling fell near them, causing the six year old to cry even harder before a mysterious figure dressed in black appeared in front of them, standing in the center of the flames like a demon. He had a woman with brown hair in his arms, causing Ranma's father to gasp out.

"Nodoka! What did you do to her!" he cried out as the man tossed the woman over the jetting flames. She landed in a lump near them, her eyes closed, her face was pale and two bite marks were on her neck. Ranma cried out "Mommy!" before he let go of his father's pants leg and grabbed her arm.

"Her blood was sufficient enough for our master like we had hopped." Said the demon-like figure. Genma stiffened up considerably at the words before he screamed, "What are you talking about demon?"

"That, Genma Staotome, is none of your concern now." The mature man grunted loudly over the roar of the flames before he jumped high into the air. With his foot stretched out, he went towards the figure. However, just before they would meet, the figure produced a sword. With a sickening squish sound, Genma fell to the flame-encrusted floor, a gurgle escaping his lips. The mysterious figure disappeared just as rapidly as he had appeared while Ranma screamed out in horror.

"DADDY!" he cried out, standing up to move towards his father. There was a loud pop and crack from the ceiling as he moved towards his father, stopping halfway across due to the flames.

**CRASH!**

The wooden beams resting in the roof of the small dojo-like house finally gave in to the flames with a powerful force. At that instant, little Ranma was on his back, a large wooden beam crushing his small frame. Pain burst through his body like fireworks, instantaneous and he screamed out in his high voice. He quickly felt something wet and sticky form under the beam and on his pajama's as flames of the fire danced close to his head. More tears poured from his eyes as a whimper escaped his lips. He was going to die, right then and there. There was another crash, this time closer to the door and another high voice he recognized.

"Hey Ranma!" called out another 6-year-old boy with a mop of shaggy black hair on his head. Ranma tried to call out, however the beam cut off his oxygen so just a moan escaped. Suddenly the wooden beam was lifted off of him and tossed to the side by where the hallway was. Ranma sucked in a shallow gulp of air as a man with his shoulder black hair pulled back by a bandana kneeled down. With strong hands, he gently picked up the small boy while the other checked on Genma.

"Dad," he said, standing up, his hand covered in red liquid. "Mr. Staotome's-"

"Not now Ryoga." The man snapped, walking back towards the door. "We've got to get Ranma-san out of here." Ryoga didn't say anything else, just fallowed his father out of the door. The cool breeze of the night shocked Ranma so much that he gasped and clutched the man's black shirt tightly. Off in the distance, the sound of a winning siren was heard over the muted fire. The man placed little Ranma on the grass far away from the burning building, as Ryoga looked over his shoulder and a woman in a tight dress holding an infant walk up towards them. Her long dark brown hair was tied into a loose bun and the baby was silent as she said "Akido, what happened?"

"Mom, a beam fell on top of him. Both of his parents are gone." Stated Ryoga flatly. The woman gasped before the man said "Yes, and Ranma-san will not be with us much longer." Ranma continued to cry, the salt water slowly filling up his ears until everything was mute. He tilted his head to remove the water and felt a stinging pain in his midsection. The dirt and the grass underneath him was quickly turning a dark shade of red.

"Oh my. What are we going to do?" asked Ryoga's mother.

"I…I don't know Enzeru." Ryoga's father stated. "Maybe we could…give him our blood." Ranma gasped out, startling the small group. It was getting harder to breathe and things were starting to turn into a more solid blackness than the night could provide. As the siren's whine grew louder, Enzeru nodded and Ryoga said "I'll do it." He quickly took his father's place at Ranma's side and rested his hand on the boy's shoulder. He licked his lips with a sandpaper tongue and said "Ranma, do you trust me?"

"Ryoga, you're my…best friend." Ranma replied, more pain filling his chest.

"Okay. I can save you, but it will be painful for a while and you won't be able to live the same way again. Do you trust me enough so I can do it?" Ranma only nodded in response. The world was becoming darker and darker.

"Ryoga, do you think you can do this?" asked Akido, placing a hand on the young boy's shoulder. He nodded before his father removed his hand and stepped back. Ryoga opened his mouth to reveal two long fangs in the middle of his normal teeth.

"Get ready." He said before he bent down over Ranma. The injured boy clenched the grass underneath him and the adults watched as Ryoga sank his fangs into Ranma's neck. More blood poured and Ranma screamed out. The pain was even more saturated than the one he had received from the fallen beam. He screamed louder, but didn't even move a muscle as the blood started to flow into his friend's mouth and Ryoga's venom went inside the injured boy.

**XxXxXxXxXxXxXxXxXxXxXxXxXxXxXxXxXxXxXxXxXxXxXxXxXxXxXxXxXxXxXxXxXxXxXxXxXxXxXxXxXxXxXxXxXxXxXxXxXxXxXxXxXxXxXx**

_Hi everyone! Well, I've been meaning to do a vampire story, and here it is, on All Hallows Eve even. Which reminds me, HAPPY HALLOWEEN EVERYONE! This prologue is just a little taste of what this story is going to be like, but I'm hopping it's not going to be too boring. If anyone has a good idea for this story, just leave it in the comments or send me a message and I'll see what I can do. Well, I'll see ya later!_


	2. The Bloodsucker

Disclaimer: Okay everyone; I don't own Ranma one half at all. Not a single character is mine…except for Vladimir. Also, the way I described how vampires are is my own.

**_AUTHOR'S NOTE:_** I just want to say thank you to everyone who has read, commented, and favorite this story! I'm sorry it took me so long to get this chapter up but with school, work and the fact everyone else in my family was hogging the computer had me a little backed up. But I promise I'll update more often and get this story going. Sorry if this chapter seems a little long and boring, but at least I left it at a good point huh?

On a side note, Thanks Sonic52 for your ideas! I already have most this story's plot written up and planned out but I love what you gave me. I'll see if I can fit them in, and if not I'll see if I can make them into another story if that's okay. Thanks again everyone and enjoy Chapter 1 (though it's technically chapter 2)!

**_VEINS: A BLOODY TALE  
Victim 1:The Blood Sucker_**

The Buzzing alarm only vibrated once before Ranma slapped his palm on top, silencing it. He let out a sigh and sat up, braiding his shoulder long black hair as he got out of his futon. '_Stupid dream._' He thought, walking to the closet. At least once a year he has had the same dream about the night everything changed. The night his parents died and he became something no one thought existed. The dream always brought back the bad memories and the pain while leaving Ranma in a state of depression and exhaustion. The teen yawned loudly as he folded up his futon and stuffed it into the closet underneath his clothes. He took one look at himself in the mirror before leaving his room, sighing. Those dark purple rings underneath his blue eyes against his already pale skin would surely give it away to the Tendo's that he had that stupid dream once again. As he headed down the stairs, the smell of bacon and fried eggs quickly got his attention and his throat started to tingle like he swallowed a cell phone set on vibrate. '_Damn!_' He couldn't help think as he slid down the banister, rubbing his neck to help his thirst. '_I'd better let Ryoga know that I need to feed soon._' When the teen entered the kitchen, the smell of breakfast grew so strong that he almost felt sick to his stomach but Ranma kept it in as he sat down next to a girl with her hair cut in a short bob style. He could hear the fibers of his clothes and of the pillow scrunch together as he moved, but focused his attention to a 20-year-old woman with her brown hair tied in a pony tale draped over the shoulder.

"Good morning Ranma." she said with a soft smile. In her hands was a metallic tray holding a steaming kettle and several glasses.

"Good morning Kasumi." The teenager replied back, yawning slightly. A concerned look crossed her face, along with everyone else at the table as she said, "Would you like some breakfast? Today we have rice and potato cakes."

"Naw, just some coffee if there's some made." Kasumi nodded and set the tray down on the table. The sharp sound of the dishes on the table made him wince. He always hated that sound. The twenty-year-old woman walked back into the kitchen while a girl Ranma's age with her brown hair cut bobbed style leaned closer to him and whispered "Hey Ranma, did you have that dream again?" Kasumi walked back into the dinning room and handed Ranma a steaming cup while he nodded. He chugged the thick black liquid down in two gulps and said "But I got more sleep this time." He carefully moved his seared tongue over his mouth to feel the damage of the coffee while others talked. The liquid had burned his tongue, the taste buds almost all gone while the roof of his mouth was singed. However, after a matter of seconds, it had returned back to normal and he felt his fangs. They were long, sharp; almost coming out of his lips and he cursed under his breath. He hoped he could keep things under wraps until tonight.

"Shoot!" cried out Nabiki, a girl with her light brown hair cut short and crosscut bangs as she stood up from the table. "We're gonna be late!"

"C'mon Ranma!" said the other teenager as she stood up, almost knocking over her dishes. Ranma quickly got up as well, though for him it was slow. The three grabbed their book bags and bolted out the door while Kasumi called out "Have a good day at school!"

"Wait! Ranma!" called out Soun Tendo, a tall man with long blackish-brown hair and a mustache. The one in question skidded to a halt in the driveway and shouted to the girls "Hold on a sec Akane." The girl with the bobbed hair cut stopped as well while Ranma waited for Soun to get to the door.

"My boy, today is the day Ranko is coming to visit." He said.

"Yeah, so?"

"I need you to go pick her up at the train station after school. I have a job interview and Kasumi has to go shopping." Ranma heard his watch ticking loudly in his ear and gulped. He was definitely going to be late. He looked back at Akane, who was waiting and said, "Okay okay! I'll get her."

"You're a good man Ranma."

"Yeah, yeah, whatever." Ranma started to run, going past Akane but letting her catch up easily. Nabiki was far ahead of them, but the two martial artists quickly caught up. The other teen only nodded at them as they rounded the corner sharply and entered the schoolyard. The sound of other teens and teachers filled Ranma's ears but he was barely conscious of them. His mind was on Ranko. He remembered the cousin of the Tendo's very well. She was their age and had the brightest hair color he ever seen, both shade and illumination. Ranma hadn't seen her in about four years, but he could remember that she was spunky, tomboyish like Akane, and a slight snoop. With her coming to visit and living at the Tendo family dojo, he was going to be in big trouble.

* * *

Kuno just hated his luck. Things first went wrong when his sister unplugged his alarm clock last night while she practiced her martial arts rhythmic gymnastics in his room while he was watching TV. Then, when he woke up this morning he was running late and had to go as fast as he could to get to school. Now he was lost. Kuno knew it was a bad idea three years ago to move so far away from his high school. As the teen ran down the edge of a parking lot belonging to an abandoned shack, he heard a scream. Kuno skidded to halt, creating skid marks on the asphalt from his feet and turned to the old shack. It was wooden and about the size of his home but as he stared at it, it's old windows vibrated and the door opened up sharply. A woman who looked to be in her early thirties ran out and stumbled as she moved down the path. She was dressed in a skimpy black dress while her long black hair billowed over her bare shoulders as she fell. Kuno gasped and started to move to her, prepared to help, even take her to the hospital. Maybe if he did this than he could get excused from school. The woman crawled up to her elbows and looked up at Kuno as he came up to her.

"Are you all right madam?" he asked politely, offering her his hand. She shook her head and took it. As she started to get back up, there was a wet thud sound and blood rose to her lips. She fell back down and Kuno gasped. What looked like a black octopus tentacle was stuck in her back, stiff and bloody at the entrance point while the other end was still inside the dark shack. Kuno stepped back as the tentacle pulled itself out from the woman and aimed at him.

"**_I'm afraid you saw to much._**" Said a devilish voice from nowhere. The tentacle went for the teen but he quickly dove to the side, landing on the asphalt. The strange black tentacle made a ninety-degree angle and with another wet thud, slammed into Kuno's shoulder.

* * *

"Hey, did you hear about Kuno?" said Ranma as him and Ryoga walked out of the high school building. The other teen nodded. He had his wild black hair held back by a leopard bandana slightly and as he smirked, the hint of a fang showed. "They said he's going to be in the hospital for at least a few weeks." Ranma nodded as a few kids bumped into him. they apologized and he said "Do you think anyone's gonna see him?"

"Hell no. He deserved being beaten to a pulp. Hey you want to head to the arcade before i have to pick up my sister?"

"Can't. I have to pick up Ranko at the train station." more and more kids came from the school as if there was a fire while Ryoga grunted.

"So why is she visiting again?" asked Ryoga as a mob of Furikin high students dashed from the school grounds. Ranma shrugged and said "Apparently, her mom got a job overseas in America. She didn't want to leave Japan so she's staying with the Tendo's until her mom is done."

"How long's that going to be?" Before the teen answered, He spotted Akane and Nabiki, then shouted "Hey Akane! Could you-"

"Sorry Ranma, I've got to get home and study. Say hi to Ranko for me!" the girl replied and ran off so fast that the boys didn't have to blink and she was gone. Ranma sighed to himself and said "She's going to be here a year." The two walked out of the gate and turned another corner. Ryoga clicked his tongue and replied "Yeesh. A full year of keeping the secret from a snoopy person. That's going to be hard. Well see ya!"

"Wait! Aren't you coming?" called out Ranma as his friend started to run down the opposite street. Ryoga waved towards him and called out "Sorry, gotta pick up Yoko! Meet ya tonight at the park!" before the teen martial artist could reply, he was gone and Ranma sighed. He started down another street and walked, a fog in his mind as to what to do to keep his secret, until he reached the train station. It was busy, bloated with people and the sound annoyed him worse than the clanking of dinner plates. He looked out into the terminal to spot a small bunch of red hair. That was her. He quickly slipped through the sardine-packed group and called out "Hey Ranko!" The girl looked up from the ticket she was looking at and smiled. Ranko was fairly short for a sixteen-year-old and she kept her shoulder long blazing red hair tied in a braided ponytail like Ranma did. Ranma would have blushed when he saw her if he was human. She had gotten pretty over the past four years with her curves in the right places and her stunning blue eyes. As soon as she saw who had called her name, her smile grew and she waved him over.

"Ranma! What a surprise! Where's the Tendo's?" she called as the black haired teen walked up to her. The smell of dirt from Kyoto filled his nose and he looked at her while he said, "They had stuff to do she Soun asked me to pick you up. Did you fall in some mud on the way here?"

"No!" she stated clearly, then looking down at herself. She was dressed in a red Chinese shirt that was two sizes to big for her and a pair of dark blue pants that were so baggy on her that she had to use a rope to keep them up. On her shoes was the trace of light brown mud. "Okay, so I did. But it wasn't my fault."

"Really now?" Ranma picked up the bags that she had brought as if it was nothing, smelling more dirt while the red head said "Really. A bunch of high school bullies were picking on a middle scholar. I had to help. Luckily there was a nice tour guide who had some spare clothes so I didn't have to ride on the train covered in mud."

"I see." The two started back towards the Tendo family dojo and they started to talk about random things. Ranma had to admit; he missed the red haired girl. Sure, she was nosy as hell, but ever since he started to live with the Tendo's after his parent's death she had become like a sister to him. And it seemed to make her happy when she told him about the useless stuff from Hazaki, the small village she was from. When they reached the home, Ranko was greeted by a mob of hugs from the family while Ranma took her bags up to her room, which was right next to his. When he came back downstairs, he saw that Ranko was lying on the couch and the others were in the kitchen, he looked at her for a moment and watched how slow her breathing was. She was asleep.

"Let her sleep Ranma!" called Akane as she was him walk passed the red head. The black haired teen only nodded and joined everyone else in the kitchen, the smell of fish wavering into his nose.

* * *

Night came quicker than a sprinter at top speed and Ranko was still asleep. Everyone went to bed, the sound of the clock ticking the only sound in the dark. It was close to around midnight when the red haired girl woke up. She moved slowly and stiffly from the couch, stretching her arms over her head and yawned. The nap was good, but she needed something to eat and go to bed. Ranko walked into the kitchen and opened up the refrigerator door, as there was a thump sound from the upper floor of the home. She froze as she stood in front of the fridge, her hand on top of the white plastic. The sound reminded her of a window being slammed open, but when she looked outside through the small window, she saw nothing. '_That was strange._' She thought, reaching for the rice. When she opened the lid, there was barely enough for her to have a snack. '_Looks like I need to head to the store really quick._' She closed the refrigerator door and went for the front door. The loud click of the clock filled her ears as she pulled on her shoes and she stepped into the cold air. It went strait through her Chinese shirt and she shivered as she shut the door and walked down the pathway from the house. The sky was slightly foggy while the moon's light was scattered in a way she could see clearly. Ranko slowly walked down the street and took in her surroundings. Things had changed in the four years she had been to Nermia and she didn't pay attention when Ranma was walking her home. The cold night added to the strangeness of the town until she spotted a street corner she recognized. She knew there was a short cut through the park nearby to a convenience store. Ranko took the street down the road and came up to the park, which created a dead end in the street. It was mostly grass and benches, no playground equipment but she still loved this park. Large Maplewood trees were interspersed in the field along with flowerbeds and pathways leading through the park. As the red head walked through it on a winding concrete path, memories of her, Ranma, Akane playing Fort with a bunch of empty boxes in the grass. More often then not Ranma's friend Ryoga would join them, trying to show off to the girls by picking up the boxes and saying they were bricks. They played until they got bored and played war by throwing rubber balls at each other until Kasumi and Ryoga's mom would go to pick them up. Ranko smiled at her trip down memory lane until she heard a scream. Ranko's natural fight instincts took in and she started running. She spotted a woman lying in a flowerbed and the red head ran up to her. She was pale and bleeding from two puncture wounds in the neck, but breathing. Ranko looked around to see the perpetrator and saw no one. She carefully lifted up the woman and carried her to a bench that stood at the edge of the path. After placing the woman on the bench, she heard another scream and turned to a donut of trees in the center of the park. Through the gaps of the trunks, she saw shadows in the center space and she felt her blood boil. She ran to the trees but slowed to a walk as she got closer. When she reached the donut of trees, she leaned against a thick trunk and looked inside. She spotted three figures and waited until her eyes adjusted to the slightly more darkness of the trees. Soon she recognized one was Ryoga in a yellow shirt and black pants with his back to her. The second was a woman, her neck bleeding as she was held by the third, Ranma. He was bent over her, his hair covering his face slightly. She saw the dark red blood go towards his mouth instead of away and Ranko took a step back. What the heck was going on? She stepped on a twig and it made a loud crunch sound in the darkness. Both Ranma and Ryoga turned to the sound, their mouths and chins covered in blood, though the red on Ryoga's was dried. A set of long sharp fangs was coming from Ranma's lips, blood dripping from the tips. Ranko let out a gasp in horror before he head started to spin and everything went black.


	3. The Truth

Disclaimer: Okay everyone; I don't own Ranma one half at all. Not a single character is mine…except for Vladimir. Also, the way I described how vampires are is my own.

**_AUTHOR'S NOTE:_** I just want to say thank you to everyone who has read, commented, and favorite this story! I'm sorry it took me so long to get this chapter up but with school, work and the fact everyone else in my family was hogging the computer had me a little backed up. But I promise I'll update more often and get this story going. Sorry if this chapter seems a little long and boring, but I'm just trying to explain how the vampires in my world work.

**VEINS: A BLOODY TALE  
****Victim 2: The Truth**

He hated the act itself, but Ranma needed to feed and at night was the best time for it. The darkness came into sharp focus as the teen crawled out of his futon and opened the window a crack. Cold air blew through the September night while he waited for the clock to slowly tick to midnight. There was a light thump on his window at the exact stroke of midnight and the teen quickly opened it as far as it would, looking down at the ground as he did so. He saw Ryoga, standing in the middle of the yard clear as day, his arms crossed over his chest and an impatient look was crossed on his face while Ranma crawled onto the banister. He jumped from the window on the second floor of the house and landed next to his friend on his feet. He acted like it was only the a few feet from his room on the second floor to the ground, however it was closer to twenty feet. Without saying a word, the two left the Tendo home at high speed, heading for the park, their place to hunt. This was the part Ranma hated the most about being what he was, hunting for the victim. With it being so late at night, it was hard to find someone, but as soon as they found two collage women, they went to work. After knocking out the women, they carried them to a hidden area in the trees and started to quench their thirsts, going one at a time so the other could keep watch. Things remained quiet in the night as all of this happened, until Ranma was in the middle of satisfying his thirst. As blood filled his mouth, suddenly there was a loud twig crunching sound, forcing them to freeze. Ranma pulled his head away from the woman's neck while Ryoga turned around and they both saw her. Ranko stood in between the trees in her pajamas as she took a step back, a look of real terror on her face and her crystal blue eyes the size of dinner plates. Ranma dropped his victim onto the ground while the red haired girl fell, the shock being to much on her nerves. Ryoga moved quickly and caught her just before she hit the ground and pressed two fingers to her neck. After a moment he removed them and said, "She's alive, just fainted."

"She saw us." Ranma stated plainly with gravity. This was the worst thing that could happen to the likes of them. If a normal human being saw them feeding in the middle of the night, they could tell the world they existed and Ranma, Ryoga, and the Hibiki family would have to move away or kill the person before they told the world. The teens didn't want to do either as they looked down at Ranko, a calm look now replacing the fear. How had this happened anyway? Usually they kept watch for each other while they fed, and they could smell a normal human a mile away. Ranma looked at Ryoga, confusion written on his stony face while he said, "What are we going to do?"

"Don't know." admitted Ryoga, causing his friend to sigh. "I guess we'll lie like we usually do to everyone. Maybe she'll believe we found them like this or something."

"Maybe, but she's smart too." Ryoga just rolled his eyes before he slung the red head over his shoulder like a sack of potatoes and stood up, saying "C'mon, we should get her home." Ranma fallowed him as they left the park and they quickly headed back to the dojo. They went at their normal speed, which could give a race car a run for it's money, until Ranko let out a moan. They slowed down as they reached the dojo's back yard and they heard her heart beat speed up as consciousness returned. Ranko opened her eyes and rubbed her head while she was still half unconscious and looked up. When she saw Ranma walking behind her, she woke up fully and started to attempt to break free from Ryoga's grip. Ryoga sighed as he came up to the deep koi pond in the yard. His first inclination to the squirming was to tightened up his muscles until she stopped moving, but instead an idea flashed in his head and he smirked. He let her go while he stood at the pond and took a step back. With a yelp and a loud splash, the red head landed in the water, her body being completely submerged.

"Why did you do that?!" Ranma yelled in a whisper while Ranko's head popped out of the water, spitting out the liquid that had filled her mouth.

"She made me loose my grip." said the other teen with a devilish smile. Ranma rolled his eyes, obviously not believing him while Ranko pulled herself out of the koi pond, not saying a word and holding her neck as if to protect it from getting injured. A look of fear returned to her face as she gulped for air and looked at the two. Ranma wiped his mouth with the back of his hand to realize there was still blood on his chin. Once he was clean, he looked at the red haired teen and said, "Ranko-chan, are you okay?"

"Don't come near me!" she screamed when the teen tried to help her up. She quickly jumped to her feet and planted them, poised to fight them if necessary.

"Well, that's a strange way to say thank you for brinin' you home." said Ryoga, wiping his mouth now to make sure the remnants of his meal wasn't there. "Maybe we should have left you in the park." Ranko squinted her eyes at them in anger, hiding the terror that they smelled on her as she pointed to them and said, "What the hell just happened?!"

"Well, I couldn't sleep so I went for a walk." Ranma replied, nonchalantly. "When I went through the park I found a woman passed out and was checking her pulse when Ryoga showed up."

"Yeah, I couldn't sleep either." the other teen martial artist replied. "Both of us were worried because she was covered in blood so - -"

"Don't you dare lie to me Ranma Saotome and Ryoga Hibiki." Ranko suddenly snapped her left hand onto her hip, obviously feeling less threatened.

"But we're - -" started Ranma however the look the red head gave him silenced him. She pointed her index finger of her free hand at him and said, "Ever since we were kids I could tell when you were lying because your eyebrow twitches." Ranma stiffed a sigh while Ryoga gave him a dirty look. Ranko was right, now he could feel the subtle vibration on his face as he told their hastily made up story. The red haired teen put her other hand onto her hip, the look of anger still on her face as she said, "Don't lie to me anymore. Tell me what just happened guys."

"Oh!" Ryoga snapped suddenly, stepping closer to Ranko. "You want to know the truth huh?"

"Ryoga, don't!" Ranma argued back in an almost pleading voice but his friend just ignored him.

"Okay then! I'll tell you what happened! You caught me and Ranma feeding on blood because we're _Vampires_." Ranko didn't say anything while her face transformed into one of shock and confusion. "Yeah, that's right Ranko-Chan. We are creatures of the night who feed on the blood of mortals and are almost immortal." Ranko fell to her knees, all of the energy she had previously possessed now zapped out of her like it was an electrical shock. Ryoga snickered and gave his devilish smile while she placed her hands on her neck and he said, "You still want to know the truth kid? See ya Ranma." In the blink of an eye he ran from the Tendo dojo, a motion blur on the grass. Ranko looked up at Ranma with a horror look on her face as she whispered, "You're..." the vampire sighed to himself and nodded.

"That's right." he said. "We're vampires."

* * *

Chronos was clearly NOT happy. His cruel red and black tentacles of his ectoplasm existence rapidly wrapped around the neck of a nameless minion with blond hair and twisted sharply. There was a loud snapping sound and the minion fell to the tile ground in a lump. The tentacles recoiled back into a black and rust red urn while a mature man watched.

"Sire, I do wish you wouldn't kill my minions." He said while he kicked the lifeless body to the side. It fell off the edge of the platform and a fast black shadow picked it up, completely unnoticed.

" Vladimir ," said a deep voice from far inside the urn. "I'm getting irritated at your behavior. It has been ten years since you last found a possible vessel for me that was even close to being what I needed. Ever since then the ones you brought haven't even been worth my time. "

"I know lord Chronos," replied Vladimir , a sour look on his face. It was true; it had been ten years since he found that woman who was a close possibility for being a vessel. Who would have thought it would have taken this long. He never did when he first found the demon inside the black vase in his grandparent's attic. Then again when he was young he never thought he'd be working for the most vial demon in history either.

"I assure you sire, we'll find you a vessel soon. In fact, I have developed a way to test large amounts of people at once."

"For your sake I hope you are right." Said the deep voice from inside the urn. The dark room seemed to be illuminated by the energy of the demon, even if it was evil and the mature man could see every feature of the ectoplasm tentacles. Personally it creped him out but he had learned a long time ago to ignore it.

"If you don't find me a body soon, then you will end up like that nameless minion."

"Yes, I understand sire." Vladimir bowed to the demon urn before he turned around and stepped off the platform it was on. He walked across the black tile floor to the large door in the room and shut it behind him, the loud bang fallowing in a series of echoes down the lonely hall.

* * *

"Hey Ranko!" called Akane as the classroom filled with everyone's lunches. The teacher stepped out of the room with his own food while the red head looked up from her book. A far away look was on her face but she quickly returned before she said,"Hi Akane, what's up?"

"We girls like to go out to the courtyard for lunch. Want to join us?"

"Um," started Ranko, closing her book. It was so old that the title was worn down and she was about halfway through. Large purple bags were under her eyes showing she was up almost all night, maybe reading. Akane wasn't sure honestly and it had worried her that her cousin had done that. The red head yawned loudly before she said anything else.

"Sorry Akane, but I'd rather not today. I need to ask Ranma something while we still have time."

"Oh, sure." Akane sighed as she picked up her lunch and headed for the door. She passed the teen martial artist on the way out, and without stopping, she grabbed him around the collar and dragged him out to the hall.

"Hey!" he protested. "What are you doin'?" Akane shoved her index finger into his chest sharply for normal humans and said with a glare, "Listen up Ranma. If you do anything to hurt my cousin, I'm going to kick your ass so hard that you'll end up in Tibet . Understand?" Ranma only nodded; a look of fright and confusion mixed on his face. He may have been a vampire, but he also knew when she got like that, then he wouldn't be able to stop her. The girl smiled and said, "Good. Have a good lunch." A few other girls from the class came out into the hallway and Akane fallowed them outside, leaving the teen vampire stunned. While he stood stiffly in the hall, Ranko came out next, her lunch in hand. When she saw the state of Ranma, she poked him in the side and said, "Are you okay Ranma?" he nodded again, quickly while the questioning look remained on Ranko's face.  
"Um, you sure?"

nod.

"…Okay. Would you mind coming with me to the roof? I need to ask you something Ranma-san." Ranma blinked a few times before he finally came back to his senses and said, "Well, that's where I was gonna meet Ryoga."  
"That's fine, it involves you two anyway." Ranma sighed before he said, "Fine, just let me get my food first." Ranko waited patiently for him to return with his Kasumi-made lunch before they went to the rooftop. Up there, the wind was blowing gently and Ryoga was waiting, sitting on a metal bench and an annoyed look on his face. The red head gulped loudly before she took a seat next to him and slid over for Ranma to sit. She smiled at the angry boy and said, "Hey Ryoga, what's up?"  
"Oh, nothing. Just wondering why you two are so slow." Ranko bit her lip to keep from laughing while the other teen vampire said, "Akane just threatened to send me to Tibet ." Ryoga burst out laughing, the soda he had been drinking flying through his nose. Meanwhile the red head put her hand over her mouth to keep herself from busting a gut. When they thought about it, it was quite funny for a human to threaten a vampire and be taken seriously. Then again, it was Akane. Ranma started to glare at them until their laughter died away and he said, "I know, ha ha very funny. Okay Ranko, what did you want to ask me?"  
"Something just doesn't make any sense."

"What?" asked the boys in unison. Ranko took a bite of her lunch, chewing slowly before she said, "How you guys walk around in the daylight." The boys looked at her with identical confused looks while she pulled out the old book she was reading from her pocket. On the red cover, they could just barely see the title, even though it was so faded: TALES OF THE NIGHT; FOLKLORE OF VAMPIRES. She opened it to a marked page and said, "This book says that vampires can't walk out in the daylight because the sun will purify them and turn them into ash. And what about this garlic stuff? Is that true? And the stake-through-the-heart stuff, how does that work? What about those animal instincts - -" Ryoga quickly put his hand over her mouth, a slightly annoyed look on his face. The skin of his hand was ice cold and hard as a rock against the girl's skin, but she ignored it until he pulled it away.

"That was the question?" he asked, the devilish smile on his lips. "You want to know about our skills?" Ranko nodded, nervous to say anymore. Ranma smiled as he leaned back, resting his head on the chained fence around the rooftop.

"A lot of those stories are not true." He said. "The only thing that is true is we drink blood, but that's only because our bodies are in such a short supply." Ryoga nodded in response and said, "For us to be able to run faster and have more muscle to be stronger, our species doesn't regenerate blood cells in our bodies like a human does."

"So, every once in a while you have to replenish the blood you've lost?"

"Yep, once a month to be exact. And if we don't then we go crazy."

"Crazy?"

"Yeah, it's our primal instincts to go hunt when we need it desperately." Stated Ranma. "Also, those myths about the garlic and the stake through the heart are fake. Garlic is strong stuff but it doesn't bother us unless it's a lot and shoved into our noses. As for the stake, our skin is too tuff for it to work anyway but if it does it's just an annoyance."

"How come?" Ranko took another bite of her lunch, trying to piece everything together. Ranma took a bite of his before he said, "Because the heart isn't as important as the brain and other organs for a vampire. The only true way to kill us besides old age and getting really sick is to tear us into pieces and burn them." The red head made a loud gulp sound while Ryoga finished off his lunch in one large gulp.

"We also eat food, like normal people." He said, mouth full of his lunch. Ranko made a bored look on her face before she poked him in the shoulder and said, "Thanks for that captain obvious. Oh, but how come you guys haven't been run out of town yet?"

"Because we can erase memories. That's a skill even a five year old Vampire can do." Ranma replied.

"Why are you asking so many questions anyway?" asked Ryoga while a bird flew overhead. The two vampires could hear it's wings beating against the wind while it flew and Ranko shifted her seat.

"Well, I'm just curious about your… condition. Especially since I'm probably the only human who knows in Nermia." The lunch bell rang loudly and the three jumped up. They moved to the door, going at a normal human pace while the students from the courtyard started to hustle inside the building. Ranko reached for the door as she neared it, but there was a moan sound and a dark green and brown figure jumped down from the higher parts of the roof. The red head fell backwards and was caught by Ryoga while they tried to figure out what was in front of them. It looked human and had decaying flesh that showed both bones and muscle. It's clothes looked torn and ragged while it had long blades glued to it's fingernails. Ranko's heart started to speed up and her body started to shake madly while terror took over. Ryoga just sighed while he looked up at Ranma and said, "I hate zombies."


	4. The Zombies

Disclaimer: Okay everyone; I don't own Ranma one half at all. Not a single character is mine…except for Vladimir. Also, the way I described how vampires are is my own.

AUTHOR'S NOTE: Sorry I've taken so long to upload this! i've been crazy busy with school and work...plus I haven't been in the mood to write lately. also, sorry if this chapter seems kinda boring, I really havent done fight scenes with out the magical elements (IE Sailor Moon type stuff ) in it so i'm afraid it's gonna be a little weak. Well, let me know what ya'll think!

**VEINS: A BLOODY TALE**  
**CHAPTER 4: The Zombies**

It looked human and had decaying flesh that showed both bones and muscle. It's clothes looked torn and ragged while it had long blades glued to it's fingernails. Ranko's heart started to speed up and her body started to shake madly while terror took over. Ryoga just sighed while he looked up at Ranma and said, "I hate zombies."

The strange creature let out a moan that was mixed with a screech from it's lips while Ranma planted his feet to the ground.

"You should get Ranko out of here." He said as he smiled; a fang showing out of the corner of his mouth. He hated zombies as much as anyone, but he did enjoy fighting them and getting a work out. Ryoga only sighed again and said, "Fine, but I'll get the next one."

"Sure." Ryoga used his free arm and lifted Ranko's bottom half into the air, holding her bridle style while she let out a yelp, the only sound her lungs would let her make.

The zombie lunged for them with an intense speed but as his razor nails flew close to them, Ryoga jumped high into the air. He went flying over the railing on the roof and the two disappeared from site while the zombie lunged for Ranma.

The teen blocked the razors with his forearm and lowered his body to the ground. He put all of his weight onto his hands and kicked upwards, slamming his shoes into the creature's jaw. The chin of the monster went flying into the air and clanked to the ground nearby while the zombie took a few steps back. Ranma smiled to himself as he got back to his feet and moved into the zombie. It saw this coming and slashed it's arms in the air in front of him. Ranma dodged them and grabbed an arm when one came in to close. He pulled the dying body towards him before turning around and flipping the zombie over his shoulder. The creature let out a jawless moan as it went flying threw the air, it's shoulder ripping from it's socket as it did so. Ranma threw the arm away nonchalantly as the zombie went over the railing and fell to it's doom. The teen slowly walked to the edge, brushing dirt off his clothes as he did so.

That was his fastest time yet. The teen walked over to the railing and looked down to the grassy field. He saw the zombie he was fighting shattered into pieces and it's eyes staring back at him. Ranma looked at it for a moment before he noticed that the rotten meat smell was still there, though the source seemed to be from the front of the school instead of the back. There was also the faint sound of his classmates screaming and Ryoga fighting. The teen sniffed the air one more time before jumping over the railing and landing on top of the dead zombie. Closer to the ground, he could hear people screaming better and sighed. '_Great,_' he thought to himself. '_Now we're gonna have to erase some memories._'

Ranma started running next to the building until he was in the front of the school. There, he saw that the courtyard was full of the living dead and his classmates who were scared out of their minds. Over in the corner, he could see Ranko and Akane paired up, their backs touching and their arms raised. The red head looked over at him for a split second before she raised her arm and sent a zombie flying. A Zombie lunged for Ranma, who smelled him coming and took a step to the left. The undead stumbled before the teen put his entire weight one his left leg and kicked it hard. The zombie went flying and smashed into the fence across the school yard, shattering into five different pieces. Ryoga joined him with a smirk on his face, a small fang showing out of the corner of his mouth.

"Looks like we'll both get a workout today." He said as another undead soldier reached for them. Ryoga causally punched it and watched as it's head landed on the ground nearby.

"This is insane!" Ranma exclaimed, seeing Akane taking care of two living dead at once. "Where do you think all of these came from?"

"The graveyard?" asked Ryoga with a shrug.

Suddenly, the smell of blood was in the air. Both vampires raised their noses to the sky and sniffed until they recognized it. They turned towards the school and saw a zombie with it's razor nails dripping with a few drops of blood. Nabiki was standing in front of it, her arm bleeding and red liquid slipping through her fingers as she held it with her other arm. Soon more blood started to fill the air. The scents started to throw off the vampires, who winced at the intensity but continued to fight.

Akane let out a yelp as an undead creature got her in the leg and blood dripped out from the four slash marks. She fell to the ground while Ranko kicked the attacking creature with a stick she had gotten from a nearby tree and said, "Akane-Chan! Are you okay?"

"Yeah…" replied the tomboy. She started to get up while another zombie came close and she called out, "Look out!" Ranko turned to hit the undead, however in the process the razors slashed at her cheek. Blood fell down in a stream down her chin and into her white school shirt. With the tree branch, she quickly stabbed the zombie and flung him into the nearby stone wall. Its body split into five different sections while the red head wiped her cheek with the back of her hand.

"I hope this doesn't leave a scar." She said, annoyance in her voice. The two girls looked around to see the zombie numbers shrinking and the nodded at each other. Ranko quickly tossed her large stick over towards Ranma and Ryoga and smiled as it stabbed two more zombies like it they were pieces of a kabob. The two vampires looked back over at the girls and Ranma said, "Hey, you almost hit us!"

"That's the price for zombie killing!" Akane called back.

"C'mon guys. Let's finish this!" called out Ranko, spotting the last ten or so zombies walking closer to them. Ryoga popped his fingers while he balled them into fists before he said, "Last one done buys the rest Raman." Akane and Ranko both high fived each other before they split up from each other, taking on two different sections of the zombie army. While the girls started to kick and punch the undead, the vampires slashed at the zombies with their own razor fingernails. Ranma swiped his hand quickly in front of the undead in front of him before the head popped off like the cork out of a bottle. The body of the zombie fell to the ground, its hands clawing the air to get one last victim. The teen vampire planted his foot onto its chest and forced all of his weight on it. The ribs crunched under his shoes loudly until his foot reached the grass and he lifted his foot up. The group looked around once the ten zombies were gone and was glad to see there were none left. Akane let out a sigh before she said, "Damn! What was that?" the two vampires shrugged their shoulders before Ranma said, "Is everyone okay?"

"Yeah, just a scratch." Said Ranko, placing her hand on her cheek. She could feel the cuts already scabbing over and hoped that it didn't become a scar of any type. Silently, Ryoga moved closer to Akane while Ranma said, "Good. Sorry about this Akane-Chan."

"What are you sorry ab-" suddenly Ryoga planted the heal of his palm on her forehead. The girl froze and her eyes grew large and blank while Ryoga said, "Nothing happened here today. You got that scratch on your leg when you tripped over a fallen tree branch in PE."

"Nothing happened today." Akane repeated in a toneless voice. Ranko watched in amazement while the teen repeated everything Ryoga had said and looked over at the other vampire.

"What is he doing?" she asked after a moment.

"He's erasing memories." Ranma stated flatly. "We're gonna have to do this to everyone in the school so they don't know about the zombies."  
"Do zombies attack often?"

"Not really. This is the first time though that so many have come to one place." Ranko nodded while Ryoga removed his hand from Akane and she blinked a few times. She placed her hand on her forehead and said, "What happened?"

"You fell asleep." Said Ryoga with annoyance. "The bell is going to ring. You better head on inside."

"Oh, okay." She started to walk back into the building, still in a daze while Ranma said, "You too Ranko."

"How long will it take to help everyone?" she asked; real curiosity in her voice. Ranma smiled while he and Ryoga raised their arms into the air. With a small pop, a large mass of black bats appeared in the air, soundless and their eyes red. Ranko let out a loud gulp sound before seeing a few fly away and attach themselves to the faces of some of the students.

"Not long really."

* * *

Vladimir watched his major zombie attack from the safety of his base. He watched with a smile on his face while the army of the undead closed in on some of the students at a local high school and felt the excitement course through his veins. Then, out of the corner of the mirror he was watching, he saw a vampire. The vampire was young, but as Vladimir watched in dismay, the vampire was joined by another and they started to kill the zombies. Anger quickly replaced the excitement until it was boiling out through the eyes and all of his army was completely destroyed. True, some of the humans who were obviously martial artists fought off some of the zombies as well, but there wasn't supposed to by any vampires around Nermia! Vladimir watched as the vampires started to erase the teenager's memories and he slammed his fist into the mirror. The glass cracked in a spider-web pattern around his fist until one long piece reached the wooden border. The image of the two young vampires faded to the evil man's reflection as he looked at himself, anger showing on his face like it was transparent.

"Damn it!" he said, looking at himself. With all of the zombies dead, then the chance of getting any information from the small computer chips in their glued on razor nails was lowered from 90 percent to 10. This was his last chance to find the vessel for Chronos. If he didn't' come up with anything this time, then he was going to end up like the nameless minion; his neck broken and his body tossed assigned like yesterday's garbage. What was he going to do?

He continued to look at his reflection as something scrolled in read across the broken glass. Vladimir looked up at the writing and the look of desperation was replaced with a smile. It seemed that even with ten percent chances, he was still able to get the name of the person who was going to be the vessel of the evil demon. Vladimir quickly stood up and started to copy the text in the air with his finger, a small trail of dark red fallowing it until he had copied the entire text. He then moved his hand to the wall, the text fallowing it. It planted itself into the wall and disappeared, connecting with a computer that was inside the wall and connected to another one in the next room. The script disappeared as Vladimir turned from the broken mirror and walked down the hall to the next room, the smile never leaving his face. Maybe this was going to work out after all.


End file.
